Method of directing the scoops in dredging machines



UNITED sr-ArEs PATENT JAMES CALLAGHAN, or NEW BEDFORD, MASSACHUSETTS.

METHOD F DIRECTI-NG' THE SCOOPS IN DREDGING MACHINES. :I

Specification of Letters Patent No. 6,0249, dated Januaryy 16, 18.49.

To all 'whom t may concern Be it known that I, JAMES 'CALLAGHAN,-

clare that the following is a full, clearfand exact description,

The nature of myinvention consists, 1st, in providing suspension movablebraceso-r levers, united by an axle on which are `iixed two grooved sheaves or pulleys over which revolving Scoopin'g buckets pass on two end` less chains; and in conjunction with the said suspension braces I provide a vertical slid#y ing frame attached to the bow of the dredge boat, as the case may be,"and to have groovedy sheaves or pulleys on said sliding'frame over which the scooping buckets also pass on the duplicate endless chains,for the purpose of scooping, (excavating) at any angle, and at any desired depth, by having the suspension braces fixed on the side of thedredge boat, and kept in such a relative position with the sliding frame as will keep the scooping buckets moving in a horizontal line, or scooping at any angle; 2nd, l provide scoop.- ing buckets with bottoms Qcapable of being thrown open by a cam fixedy on ythe vertical sliding frame, so that the mud &c., may be discharged from the buckets at that part of the frame on which the cam is xed; 3rd, `I also provide a capstan drum to surround an upright power shaft loo-se on the same, but made to gear with it by a clutch. Around this drum are wound chains which are atL tached to the suspension levers, and also to the vertical sliding frame, so that when the levers, or frame mentioned, are to be elevated, or lowered, the said capstandrum is clutched with the power shaft, and the chain, o r chains wound up, or let ofi", and the levers, or frame elevated or'lowered,to change the line of draft of the scooping buckets; 4th, I provide scows or tenders into which the mud &c., is to be discharged, and provide said tenders with discharge ports of such depth as will allow said scows or tenders to discharge their mud in any depth of water, and especially in shallow `water or streams, where the tender may get aground,V so that the mud may be discharged without waiting for the tide toliit the tender aslis 'y the'case with all mud-tenders at present in use. i i, i

l To enable others skilled in the art tomake and use my invention, I rwill proceed t'o de-` scribe its construction Yand operat1on,wrefer` ence being had to the laccompanying drawings, making a 'part-1 of this specilicationin which;

Figure 1, isya'side elevation, Fig.V 2, the vertical 'sliding lI'ranf1Qe,'Fig.` 3, the bottom, y

spring and catchy of the bucket, Fig.` 4,."a vertical view of thejmode oi" clutching or gearingthe horizontal shaft whichdrives' the 'chains andbuckets, with avertical shaft 1 f.

connected with t-he crank shaft'of the'en gine. Fig. 5, is a view of the capstan drum, showing how it may be geared or ungeared with thevertical shaft, andFig. 6 is an iend Sectio-n ofthemudtender,exhibiting-thesischarge ports open.

The'same letters indicate like parts on all the figures 'l (ci) represents thel hull of the bo-at, (an y old steamboat will answer the purpose.)

s `(t) represents the timbers of a frameat-v tached to the side of the boat to support the suspension levers 'and the pulleys.- This frame has its longitudinal timbers very.. I i

in thickness, and the posts or upright ftin"1- the frame to the side of the boat, toallow the buckets to move, as it were, over the `middleVv of the frame at the side of the'boat, they-QQ fore 'the timbers (b) of thev said Aframe aref duplicated withk a space between for thev ,i

,f u 95 y, vIt yis a" strong* I piece oftimber nearly twoV thirds the length .f

buckets to move. e f (c) 1s a suspenslon lever.

of the boat, in length. It is attached tothe Side 0f the ,bOat by ay strong set screw 1X,fto g' 1oo-i` allow the said brace to be moved `up and down when desired.` (al) is another suspen-r Sion lever having two arms like the prongs'-f` .Y f of a fork-each arm supports an axle at its` i Y lower. extremity, whichyisthe axis of 'a grooved pulley (e), thereforethe arm (d,')`

is duplicated and (6') is duplicated directly opposite one another. (c) is braced on Athe.

middle of the pulleys axis, There are'eigh;V

grooved'face pulleys on the frame (e) frame (which is firmly secured to the boat.)

The vertical sliding framel", lis for Aregulating the` angular cut of (Gr) the scoopingy buckets, by shifting the said frame up' or down as the case maybe. The buckets are xed 'upon tached to'` oneside of the bucket and the otherl chain to the other side of the bucket,

so that the bucket is supported between the,

two chains and swings a little in thisposi-V tion, so that when the bucket is ascending`r the vertical slidingV frame filled with mudhl it (the bucket) juts Vinward a little, bearing upon a cam N, which 'throws the spring of the bottom of the bucket out of its catch,

andthe door then flies open and theumudis The double,l chains move Vin the grooves of the pulleys dischargedA out of the bucket.

and in the grooves are pins or projections which catch into the links of the chains as the buckets revolve, so that the chains may not slip in the grooves. The pulleys that are fixed on the axle of the suspensionlevers, are the fulcrum for the action of the` buckets upon the mud (Ste.` The line of drauft is regulated by raising or lowering the vertical sliding frame AF, and the dip o-r depth at which the buckets scoop or'exca# vate is regulated by lowering the suspension levers (c) (cl).' i

The'suspension braces are elevatedor lowtimber-e by the same means.

ered as follows.

(K) 'is chain` which is'attaohed to the center of thecross head of (d) the double arm or pro-ng" lever. `This chain passes through (p) an eye, and from it along and around the capstan drum J, on the vertical shaft (z'). The drum J has clutch teeth or notches on it which gear into a cross pin at` tached to' a sliding rod in the center of (i), worked by a lever (l) as exhibited in Fig. 5. By lowering the pin on the shaft into the notches of the drum, the said capstan drum will move with the vertical shaft, the chain K, will be gathered around the drum and the suspension braces thus elevatedthe contrary motion ofthe vertical shaft will lower the braces, or suspension levers (c) (d). The vertical sliding frame can be operated inthe same manner as the suspension levers, Vor onthe same principle,l by having a loose drum on the `horizontal shaft which drives the axle-of (e3). 1 Thisvhorizontal'shaft is driven by (2') the vvertical shaft, being connected by bevel gearing two or a, double endless chain (it). .Onechain is at-` with the same. The shaft (fi) is connected l'bucket chains, there are `two bevel wheels lfor gearing and ungearing the horizontal shaft with the vertical shaft; 'Fig t, is a vertical view of this arrangement.

M, is the bevel wheel on the vertical shaft and 0, O,- are bevel wheels on the horizontal shaft, (Z) is the lever or handle to work the clutchon the horizontal shaft.v By gearing the outside bevel wheel with the vertical shaft by a clutch in the usual manner, the chains and buckets lwillbe revolved, and by changing theclutch and gearing the inside bevel wheel, the motion ofthe buckets will be reversed. e s l The Fig.` 3 is a view rof the bottom of the bucket G. Q, is a steel spring attached to the catch rod K. The catch rod'hooks into a catch T, on the side ofthe bucket, and the bucket is then closed in the bottom. By

pressing on the bottom of the catch rod, the catch is released and the door (bottom) of the bucket then flies open. After the mud is discharged fromv the bucket, the door, (bottom) ofthe bucket is closed by its own weight, when the bucket is` passing down between' (e3) and (e). l

Fig. 6, is a transverse section view of the ports of the mud tender. t, is` the mud receptacle or hold. (e) is a strong timber running the whole length of the scow or tender Vand fastened on the keelson: this timber z divides the discharge ports. `The doors of the discharge ports are attached to windlasses (u) (u) by achain or chains for the elevating andlowering said doors. s s are attached tothe sides of the tender by strong joints andV .S2732 attached to the rllhe ports of the tender are thus divided parallel with the timber (e). The doo-rs are made of such depth as to be level `with 'the bottom of the tender, when they are open, so that if the tender was to get aground in sho-al water by letting down the doors, a lportion of the mud would be discharged into the 'space belowthe dors and the scow (tender) `thus in the foregoing -for the-purposes setforth is attached on the oneside of the boat, and I chose to employ a likeapparatus `on the other side, so as to have -two different sets ,of buckets in operation atthe same time.

The cranes are for operating the diving bell or the tong, they therefore need notbe described. The sharp upright stakes are for keeping the boat steady 'in a swift'current, by driving them into the bed of the river.

Having thus described my invention, I

5 do not Claim the revolving buckets for eX cavatng as they have been long used for that purpose, but

I claim- The vertical sliding frame F, to regulate the scooping line of drauft, in combinale tion with the suspension levers, whereby the buckets as they revolve over the pulleys, are' made to scoop at any angle, at any depth.

JAMES GALLAGHAN. VWitnesses:

BENJ. T. CONYDEN, R. MACFARLANE. 

